Trading Standards operation caught on camera

Trading Standards raided two premises in a joint operation with Blackburn and Darwen Police recently, in a bid to tackle the sale of any illicit vapes in the borough.

Following receiving intel from the public, a newsagent and a shop were targeted in a Trading Standards operation which took place in December, headed up by Senior Trading Standards Officer Rachel Wilcock.

The aim of the operation was to disrupt the sale of illicit products, taking them off the streets and out of customers’ hands. Both raids were filmed and can be viewed on their YouTube channel.

A sniffer dog called Sky was also part of the operation. She has been specifically trained to sniff out illegal vapes and tobacco.

In the first premises, a Blackburn newsagent, they found:

• 1300 cigarettes – seized for non-duty paid, counterfeit and non-standardised labelling requirements.
• 700g of counterfeit tobacco
• 56 illicit vapes – all were above the minimum tank value of 2ml.

They were discovered in two separate concealments in the back rooms of the newsagents, sniffed out by sniffer dog Sky.

In relation to the tobacco and cigarettes, a referral has been made to the HMRC track and trace team. This is a new tool that our Trading Standards team are utilising to allow them to seize more illicit product and deal with it much more efficiently. The owner is at risk of a £2500 fine for a first offence. In regards to the vapes, they will now be destroyed.

In the second premises, a shop in Blackburn, a large amount of goods were seized, with the street value estimated to be in the region of £20,000:

• 1538 illicit vapes
• 4 apple watches (suspect counterfeit)
• 9 pairs of Nike trainers (suspect counterfeit)
• 67 t-shirts – various brands (suspect counterfeit)
• 400 cigarettes
• 1 large unlabelled pouch of tobacco
• 250g hand rolling tobacco (non duty paid)
• 120 toys – bearing squid games imagery and lilo and stitch imagery (suspect counterfeit)

The police also seized 45 vapes containing THC/Spice.

Three people were arrested during this operation and remain under investigation by the police. Depending on forensic enquiries, it’s possible that the case will go to CPS. The owner is also at risk of a £2500 fine from the HMRC track and trace team.

A warning letter will be sent to both businesses and they will be checked again on future operations.

Rachel Wilcock, Senior Trading Standards Officer at Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council said: ‘’Our Public Protection team take the sale and supply of illicit products seriously and will use every tool at our disposal to deal with it.

‘’The government are continuously developing new strategies and tools to help us deal with these matters more efficiently, to allow us to tackle more offenders.

‘’Tools available to us include seizure and surrender of products, referral to the HMRC track and trace penalty process, application for closure orders, and prosecution. In future we will also be able to issue fixed penalty notices to businesses who do not comply with various pieces of legislation.

‘’We ask businesses in Blackburn with Darwen to always trade fairly and legally and source their stock from legitimate, well-known suppliers.’’

If they have any queries with regards to the legality of any products that they intend to stock, we can advise businesses for free on this matter. Please call 01254 585585 and ask for Trading Standards. 

Should residents become aware of illicit products being made available in our borough, they can report it online, or call Citizens Advice, for free on 0808 223 1133.

Councillor Jim Smith, Executive Member for Environment and Communities said: ‘’There is no room for businesses who sell counterfeit or illicit goods in this borough, especially when it comes to selling to children.

‘’Despite being a small team with big responsibility, our Trading Standards team do an excellent job in responding to residents’ concerns and I thank them for their work.

‘’If any residents know of businesses that are involved in wrongdoing such as what is highlighted in this video, I urge them to contact Citizens Advice, so the appropriate action can be taken.’’